Center's gunna hold?
by MadDelight
Summary: Bones and Booth. 5th season spoilers. Aftermath of you-know-what. aka 100th ep. Multi-chaptered and as in character as possible. With a bit more focus on the relationships than the forensics.
1. Prologue

**Spoilers for the 5th Season! God there sure is an influx of these stories but it's just a feeling I can't throw away. I won't be satisfied until these characters speak their peace. Because nothing makes sense anymore in my world. I was devastated with 100. Nothing makes sense. **

**So hopefully this story will shed a little light and make the bad feelings go away. **

**As in character as possible. Really. **

**My second Booth/Bones fic. It's just not on my profile anymore. Honest!**

**penname used to be : Mazingenggrl**

**enjoy!**

**---------**

**Prologue: **

Nothing made sense anymore to Agent Seeley Booth.

The woman he had loved for five years didn't love him back. And since then nothing had made sense in his world.

Days were still the same. Fighting crime, catching bad guys, seeing Bones. Seeing Bones. Therein lay the problem. It was hard just to look at her after his failed attempt at 'gamboling'. He had thought something would spark between them. Surely, there had to have been something. But of course, it could've all been in his head. She was a scientist. Too rational to be swept up in romance. Sex was just sex to her. It wasn't making love. And then, well, he couldn't pine for her. Agent Seeley Booth did not pine, he moved on. That was exactly what he had intended to do, move on. But some women were hard to forget, especially when you saw them everyday. Worked with them. And felt a chemistry that couldn't be denied. That was the problem. He had never liked going against his gut feeling. But that's what she was asking him to do.

He was even questioning his gut.

So you see, nothing made sense anymore in the world of Agent Seeley Booth.

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	2. Subtle Change

**Some content finally. Here's the first chapter.**

**enjoy!**

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He walked into the lab and looked up on the platform. There was a new intern hovering over the body, along with Hodgins and Cam. But Bones was nowhere to be found. She came out into the field with him still, but it seemed like in close quarters she kept her distance more and more.

Booth scanned his card and stepped up to the table. Cam gave him a nod, but he barely paid attention. He was paranoid that everyone in the lab knew of his failed attempt. That they could sense the confession that had sprung from his lips and changed the chemistry between him and his partner.

"Looks like Angela was right on the identification." Cam muttered.

"This is Sylvia Porter." Hodgins offered.

Booth nodded, trying to stay involved in the case. He had to focus and try not to wonder where Bones was.

"I should go talk to her husband. Question her co-workers." He said to no one in particular. "Where's Bones?"

"Angela's office." Hodgins supplied.

Booth walked down the hallway and stopped just outside Angela's office, realizing that he shouldn't eavesdrop, but too shocked by what he heard not to.

"Sweetie, what do you mean?" Angela's voice was sweet and caring as always. "What did Booth say?"

"He said we could still work together, but Ange he seemed so...." Bones trailed off.

"Well of course he was going to be upset, you rejected him." Angela stated plainly.

"I didn't reject him. I merely didn't agree with the situation. I can't change, Angela. I'm a scientist." Bones sounded angry, but of course rational as ever.

"Sweetie, I hate to break it to you, but that's rejection." Angela shook her head, sighing. "Why don't you just tell him the truth?"

"The truth?" Bones sounded confused. "It was the truth. Starting a relationship with Booth, there's just one outcome and you and I both know what it would be."

Booth couldn't take it anymore; he didn't want to hear it.

"Hey, C'mon Bones. We've got a positive ID on the victim." He messed with his belt buckle.

Bones nodded, all business. "Yes, of course." She turned on her way out the door. "Thanks Angela, I'll see you later."

"Bye sweetie." Angela called, and Booth couldn't help but notice the tinge of disappointment in her voice.

**-------**

Booth glanced sideways at his partner. They walked farther apart now. Their gaze didn't meet for quite as long, and when it did, she was the one to look away first.

He couldn't help but notice the sudden differences in their relationship. Or maybe it was all in his head. But there were subtle differences, weren't there?

Oh well, it didn't matter to the case. And that's what he had to focus on, work and the case at hand.

*********


	3. Tension

**Chapter Two.**

**Thanks for the favorites, story alerts, and reviews. You guys rock.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**---------**

Brennan sighed for the third time in the past five minutes. This wasn't her work. This was Booth's job. To talk to the family and figure out how this woman had lived. To talk to her co-workers and see who had motive. Her work was bones. Science. To figure out how the victim had died. All the evidence, everything she needed was in the bones. She didn't need to make a connection to the people in the victim's life. This wasn't her work. It was Booth's. And she found that even though she had nearly begged Booth to let them continue working together, she wanted less and less to be in the field.

She glanced at Booth, ready to be out of this place. Once outside the door of the victim's home Booth turned to her, livid.

"What was that in there? You didn't say a word. Usually I can't keep you from butting in."

"I didn't feel a need to say anything. You seemed to have it covered." She strode to the car, leaving Booth in her wake. But he was right on her heels.

"What's the deal, Bones?" He slammed the car door. This was different than their usual fighting. That felt natural. The way things should be, friendly bickering, but now... Booth seemed truly angry.

"Butting in? That's what you call my input now?" She found it pointless to slam her door. "And don't call me Bones."

The second it was out of her mouth, she regretted it. She caught a glance of the look on Booth's face and noticed the shock.

"Fine," He said angrily. "Dr. Brennan."

It was like Brennan had time traveled back to five years ago, when she and Booth were still at each other's throats from their first case. When she had petulantly said that she hated him. Things had changed; obviously they could both feel it. There was a tension that she couldn't shake. Not everything had changed, but something was certainly different.

They drove back to the Jeffersonian in silence.

**-------**


	4. Angela's Intervention

**Chapter Three.**

**Thanks for reading. I really appreciate it : )**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**---------**

"Hey, have you noticed something different between Dr. Brennan and Booth?" Cam asked Angela, offhandedly.

"Different? No." Angela shook her head, answering a bit too quickly. "There's nothing different." She chuckled nervously.

Cam gave her a skeptical look. "Alright, as long as it doesn't interfere with our work."

Angela laughed outright. "When have you ever known Brennan to let anything interfere with her work?"

Cam nodded. "Very true."

**-----**

Bones walked into the lab, Booth trailing behind her.

"Well fine." He sounded petulant to her own ears. "Stay out of the field then. You can just be a squint!"

She made it to her office and shut the door, letting Booth know he wasn't welcome inside. She watched him walk angrily away, before resting her head in her hands and forcing herself not to become emotional.

Before she could rub her temples and contemplate the last forty-eight hours, she clicked on her computer and began to type. It always helped to work, rather than become emotional, and certainly she could not let herself become emotional.

A decision was a decision, and she knew she was right. That she and Booth couldn't have a relationship. A working relationship was all she could take. Serious relationships weren't her, and of course she knew how it would end. She would leave him. That's why he was the one who needed protecting from her. She couldn't hurt him. It would change everything. And Temperance Brennan needed Booth in her life. She could not be who she was without him. If things got started between them, inevitably they would end. And work, and their relationship, it would never be the same. She couldn't condone that. It wasn't rational to start a romantic relationship with Booth. Love wasn't rational, and Brennan couldn't handle that.

"Hey sweetie," Angela knocked on the door lightly while letting herself in.

"I'm busy." Brennan didn't even bother looking away from her computer screen.

Angela hovered. "Listen, I really don't think you should ignore this."

"Ignore what?" Brennan focused on the screen.

Angela rolled her eyes. "You're kidding, right? Sweetie, this thing with Booth. You can't pass up this opportunity. You may never have this chance again."

"Angela, I don't want to talk about this. I'm working." Brennan said, in a tone that meant the end of the conversation.

"Brennan, I'm your best friend, so trust me when I say that I know how you feel about Booth, even if you're denying it." Angela stomped her foot. "Hey!"

Brennan looked up from her computer at an exasperated Angela.

"Sweetie, you're making a big mistake. I'm trying to be understanding about this, but I mean, come on."

She shook her head. "It's my decision, Ange."

"I can't let you make this decision. You're denying yourself love sweetie, true love." Angela was nearly pleading with her friend now, trying to get her to understand the severity of the mistake that she was making.

"This isn't a match-making game, Angela. It's Booth." Brennan's voice choked with emotion. She couldn't hold the dam of emotions back anymore.

"Just follow your heart." Angela advised.

Brennan shook her head, eyes welling with tears. "I don't know how. I don't have an open heart like you, or Booth."

"Sweetie." Angela's voice filled with compassion. She went to place her hand over her friend's.

"Dr. Brennan?" Daisy called. "I've figured out how Sylvia was killed." She flounced up to the door. She glanced between Angela and Brennan. "Is something wrong? If this is a bad time, I can just come back later."

"No, it's fine." Brennan stood, covertly wiping at her eyes.

Angela gave her friend a loaded glance as she left, but Brennan was Brennan. She was already back to being all about her work.

***********


	5. Squint's Place

**Chapter Four. **

**All of the alerts, favorites, and reviews are, as always, appreciated.**

**So far the only grammar mistake I found myself making was on the word, "gamble" in the prologue. **

**There's a bit of a **Bones contest** on my profile if you're interested. Just scroll down to where it says CONTEST.**

**Realized I haven't done this yet** ------Disclaimer:** Bones originally belongs to Kathy Reichs, but is currently under the great care of Fox, Hart, Deschanel, and Boreanaz.**

**---------**

The logic was obvious, he loved her, and she, him. But then again love couldn't be logical. Brennan stared at the set of remains in front of her and tried to focus.

The woman who had been murdered was Sylvia Porter; she had been struck in the parietal bone with a blunt object. This was obviously the cause of death, as Daisy had just pointed out to her moments ago.

She hated him. Brennan hated Booth for bringing this up. Now that his feelings were out in the air she couldn't help thinking that she had done the wrong thing.

Those feelings had to be dealt with. _But they were_, she argued with herself._ In the most logical manner that I could._ She sighed, and tried once again to focus on the remains. But the problem was that love and logic didn't work together, that was irrefutable. So then, were the feelings really dealt with? Or were they still hanging out in the air, for her to deal with until her mind stopped working? Which, of course, would never happen.

She hated him for bringing this up, oh how she hated him.

**-------**

"Bones!" Booth called, striding into the lab.

Brennan focused on continuing to instruct Daisy what to do. "Figure out what kind of object struck her."

"Yes Dr. Brennan." Daisy nodded and obediently went straight to work.

"Bones! We've got a suspect." Booth entered the lab, geared up and ready for the case.

"According to you, I'm just a squint now. Therefore, there is no reason for me to accompany you to interrogate a suspect." She snapped off her gloves and tossed them into the trash.

"C'mon Bones, you know we work well together." Booth sounded more amiable then he had in the past forty-eight hours. Perhaps she should give him a chance.

But then he made the mistake of grabbing her arm, to pull her out of the room.

She raised her hand, as if to slap him. But when she looked into his eyes, her hand fell. She realized that she hadn't held his gaze for longer than a few seconds since the incident between them. The confession.

But Brennan was Brennan.

"If I'm a squint then I belong in the lab. I am not a cop. I'm a scientist. Go grab the suspect on your own." She turned away, determined to hold her ground on this.

"I think you mean 'bag'." Booth grinned wryly.

"What?" Brennan turned on her heel, obviously irritated.

"I'm going to bag the suspect, Bones, not grab him."

She wanted to smack the grin right off his face. "I've already asked you not to call me Bones." She replied angrily.

The grin fell from Booth's face. "So this is how it's going to be now?"

Brennan shook her head. "I don't know what that means."

Booth's shoulders sagged. He sighed quietly. "Of course you don't." He rolled his eyes and turned on his heel.

Bones watched him walk away with no intention of following. She was still confused about Booth's last statement. But didn't dare ask or follow him. Her place was in the lab and that's where she would stay.

Apparently Booth was going to work in the field alone.

***********

**A/N: Bones' patented catchphrase- "I don't know what that means."**

**And two common phrases that she unknowingly messed up-**

**"Grab the suspect."**

**(should be bag)**

**And-**

**"Now that his feelings were out in the air."**

**(should be 'out in the open')**

**anywho, perhaps that last one mentioned was too subtle. **

**More to come!**

**-MD**


	6. Guy Talk and Field Work

**Chapter Five. **

**The alerts, favorites, and reviews are greatly appreciated.**

Disclaimer:** Bones originally belongs to Kathy Reichs, but is currently under the great care of Fox, Hart, Deschanel, and Boreanaz.**

**After this chapter I'm going to try to yield the posting for a bit. See if the reviews come in. I'm not a review whore, honest. I'll keep writing, the muse will not be quelled. But hey. Done rambling.**

**:)**

**Booth/Hodgins/Angela heavy chapter. **

**---------**

Booth placed his bottle on the counter and grumbled. "Don't think this means anything. Because it doesn't."

"Hey, dude, I don't pry. I'm just here to keep a guy company." Hodgins took a long sip from his beer. "Shouldn't drink alone, you know."

"Yeah. Yeah." Booth shrugged. Things were awkwardly quiet between him and the squint, but Booth liked Hodgins... most of the time. But the only reason Booth was sitting here with the squint was because he couldn't ask Bones to come with him. At least he had chosen a bar instead of the diner. A change of scenery was good for him, and made it less likely that he would run into Bones or Angela. He couldn't take any more avoidance or knowing glances.

"So..." Hodgins trailed off, glancing awkwardly at his hands.

"You know." Booth said accusingly.

"Know? Psh, I don't know anything." Hodgins lied, quickly taking a sip of his drink.

"Bones told Angela, Angela told you." Booth pieced together. "You know."

Hodgins shrugged. "Nothing stays quiet in the lab, you should know that by now. But hey, rejection is rough man, I'm here for you if you need it." He reached out to punch Booth's shoulder.

"Do it and you'll be missing an arm." Booth deadpanned, glaring at Hodgins and taking a long pull of his beer.

"Listen, I know you probably don't want to hear this." Hodgins didn't dare look over at Booth, sure that he was fuming. "But, true love just isn't out there. Women have no idea what they want and neither do we. It's all just one big mess. I mean look at me and Angela. Things were great for a while, but let's face it. True love is just an idea, placed in our minds when we're young by the mass media. It's a conspiracy to get us to believe in a perfect concept that will never truly exist."

Booth shook his head. "You had me until you threw the conspiracy in there."

"Hey, it's cool." Hodgins took a swig of his drink. "It's just, I know about this, man." He took another drink. Booth glanced over at Hodgins, waiting for him to continue. "Angela basically rejected me. I went through my angry period. Where I was mad at the whole world. Trust me, when I say I know what you're going through."

"You have no idea what I'm going through." Booth said, anger rising in the voice. Hodgins gave the FBI agent a startled look. "You got to give the romance a chance, you had a beginning and a middle, maybe not a very good end, but I didn't even get past the title. I got nothin." Booth took another swig of his alcohol.

Hodgins cleared his throat. "I'm gunna head out." He placed enough money on the counter to cover their drinks plus another for Booth. "Don't get too sloshed." He hit his friend lightly on the arm before heading out.

Booth turned, "Hey, Hodgins. Thanks for the attempt."

The squint turned and nodded. "Anytime, man."

Booth turned back to the drink in his hand and swirled it around in the bottle, a perfect mimic of his swirling thoughts. He polished one beer off, only to gesture for the bartender to bring him a drink with a harsher bite.

**-------**

"Why am I in the car with you?" The female in the passenger's seat of Booth's SUV was not his partner. She flicked her dark hair out of her face and stared questioningly at Booth.

"Because I needed someone to help me figure out why the victim was murdered. I know the who, I need the why." Booth said, trying to be patient.

"But this isn't in my job description. Just because you're mad at Brennan doesn't mean you can drag me along on your little escapades." Angela crossed her arms defiantly. "You're going to have to work with her eventually."

Booth nodded, giving Angela the smallest grunt of acknowledgement.

"So, once again, why am I here?" Angela persisted.

Booth tried to focus on the road. "Because I need a sounding board, and you're it, okay?"

"And you're avoiding Brennan."

"No, I-" Booth sputtered. "No, You're just the squint who's the best with people."

"Fine. I can play along with your game of denial." Angela couldn't keep the wry grin off her face.

Booth nearly groaned, perhaps bringing Angela along hadn't been the brightest idea.

"So, where are we going exactly?" Angela glanced out the window.

"To the gardening place where Sylvia worked, some kind of tree nursery. Hodgins identified the fertilizer that was found on the bones." Booth explained.

"So...?" Angela quirked her brow.

"So, I initially thought it was the husband that killed our victim. But now I'm thinking it was someone else who she was romantically involved with, and you're usually good at seeing those things. Like I said, you're good with people." Booth turned at the stop sign and pulled into the gardening place past the welcome sign.

"You're good with people too, Booth." Angela insisted; she knew what this was really all about, even if Booth didn't want to admit it to himself.

Booth sighed, "Just, come on." And Angela agreed, following Booth out of the vehicle and one step closer towards solving the case.

******** **


	7. Work Together

**Chapter Six. **

**The alerts, favorites, and reviews are always appreciated.**

Disclaimer:** Bones originally belongs to Kathy Reichs, but is currently under the great care of Fox, Hart, Deschanel, and Boreanaz.**

**Okay, I couldn't do it. The muse beckoned and I answered. **

**---------**

"A shovel!" Daisy exclaimed after examining the bones carefully.

Brennan gave her a look.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to become so enthusiastic." Daisy explained.

"Apology accepted." Brennan said tersely. "Now..." She gestured towards the remains.

"The victim was hit in the side of the head with a shovel." Daisy continued. "But that wasn't what killed her. It appears she was strangled first." She pointed to the vertebrae. "See, here and here."

Brennan scrutinized the bones, shaking her head. "Her hyoid was broken, that's what killed her. Obviously someone was trying to make it look like a suicide." She said in her definitive tone.

"I don't know how I missed that." Daisy said, defeat in her voice. "It must be this whole thing with Lance."

"You should keep your personal life out of your work." Bones said in her matter-of-fact tone. Of course she didn't realize the underlying meaning to her statement. But one thing was for sure, Brennan had to go inform Booth how the victim had died.

She left the lab in a hurry, leaving a confused Daisy to deal with the bones.

**------**

"Bones!" Booth exclaimed, heading towards her office.

"The victim was killed by someone snapping her hyoid bone." Brennan said.

"Alright," Booth said. "Let's just jump right in."

Brennan nodded. "I thought you'd appreciate getting that information as quickly as possible."

"Yeah." Booth agreed. "Guess I've got to go interrogate the suspect."

Brennan didn't bother to show any interest in going along with Booth.

"So, are you coming?" Booth shifted impatiently. "We've gotta wrap up this case."

"My place is here, Booth." Brennan stood, looking directly into her partner's eyes.

"Don't give me that, Bones. We're partners. We work together." Booth held her icy blue gaze. "Your place is with me, in the field. We need to work together."

Brennan nodded. "That's all I want."

Booth didn't miss the meaning behind her words, even if she did. The staring contest between them intensified.

"Then let's go catch the bad guy." Booth grinned at his partner. Brennan nodded and followed, realizing that this was all she had wanted from the beginning. For things to go back to normal. For things to work with Booth.

*********

**A/N: One or two more chapters left. **


	8. Pie and the Center

**Chapter Seven. **

**The alerts, favorites, and reviews are always **greatly appreciated.

Disclaimer:** Bones originally belongs to Kathy Reichs, but is currently under the great care of Fox, Hart, Deschanel, and Boreanaz.**

**Time for a talk between our favorite pair. **

**---------**

She watched him through the window in the interrogation room. He hadn't looked surprised when she announced that she didn't want to sit in with him.

Working together again, it was nice, but still not exactly the same. It was hard to ignore feelings once they we're vocalized instead of a subtle undercurrent between them. Or, according to Angela, not so subtle.

Brennan watched Booth work. She smiled. He was following his gut again, and he was right. Although she didn't agree with that method, she couldn't deny that it worked for Booth.

The suspect was taken off in handcuffs by another agent. Booth walked through the door, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Well, we got him. Turns out the lover strangled Sylvia because she wouldn't drop her husband."

Brennan shook her head. "Her fidelity got her killed."

Booth nodded solemnly. "Coffee?" His eyes were filled with hope.

"Of course." Brennan agreed, slipping her arm through his. It was a common enough gesture between them, but something she hadn't done since their night outside the Hoover building. She couldn't help but notice the grin that spread across her partner's lips, but she didn't care to analyze it.

They walked away from the building, linked together.

**--------**

Brennan sipped her coffee and Booth ate another forkful of pie.

Neither of them spoke, the lack of banter was unnerving. Brennan was deep in thought, and Booth was enjoying his pie.

Rationality, logic, that was what Booth had to break through to get to Bones, to reach her heart. He thought he had tried, but really, he had just jumped. He couldn't rush her into things, couldn't push. But who was he kidding. He couldn't move on either.

She was logical, rational, scientific, and he was not. But there was something about Seeley Booth. Although, it wasn't enough to stave off the feelings of abandonment. Everyone Brennan loved in the past had left her. It was logical for her to be afraid. But this wasn't working together; it was tiptoeing around one another. Waiting for the other to make a move. Even if Booth couldn't break down her walls completely, it was true that he had pushed himself into her heart. Brennan never realized she had allowed it, but she had. The problem was, she couldn't lose him. And relationships, let alone one with a co-worker, failed the majority of the time. And she couldn't take that leap with him. As much as a part of her surely wanted to, it was more important to Brennan that she keep a piece of Seeley Booth in her life, rather than have all of him and feel the loss of him entirely. She knew her odds, and played it safe.

Their eyes met, breaking the awkwardness of their silence. Whenever their eyes met it was as if the whole rest of the world was shut out for a moment and it was just them-- Booth and Brennan.

Booth took a forkful of pie offered it to his partner. "Pie?" There was a perceptible change in his gaze.

"You know I don't like pie, Booth." But, against her rational mind, Brennan found herself leaning forward and accepting the bite of pie from Booth.

He grinned at her as he watched her grimace in disgust.

"As I've said before, it's too sweet."

"Then why'd you taste it?" Booth retorted.

"Because I was tired of you asking me to. It didn't make sense to prolong the inevitable any longer." Brennan rationalized.

"Right Bones." Booth's grin widened as Brennan defensively made her case about pie tasting.

The banter was back, and he knew tomorrow that work would be work just as it always had been for the past five years.

Some things would never change, like the chemistry between partners. Some things inevitably would. But that didn't mean there wouldn't be another chance.

The center will hold.

*********

**A/N: loyal reviewers and readers, thanks so much for taking this post 100th episode journey with me. There are a ton of post 100th fics out there and I am so glad you chose mine as one of the lucky to be read. **

**I am frankly, very happy with how these feelings of mine ended up coming out. I'm hoping this good catharsis will last until the season finale. **

**Check out my next story if you feel the urge: **The Love in the Scientist. **It's got a bit more chemistry in it, if you know what i mean. **


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